u/Perpetual_AI

Hey, incoming '30 here, CS major heading in pretty sure I want to do AI/ML research long term. Trying to get a realistic picture before I show up in September.

A few things I was wondering:

1. How early do freshmen actually land in a lab? Is fall semester research a thing or is it spring at earliest, or really sophomore year for most people?

2. Cold-emailing professors vs going through formal programs (OURSIP, Senior Thesis Research Fund, ReMatch). Which actually works for AI labs specifically? Or is it mostly word-of-mouth through grad students?

3. Which AI/ML faculty take freshmen seriously? Not asking for names to spam, more like which groups have a culture of bringing undergrads in early vs which are PhD-only in practice.

4. What signals matter when you reach out? Github projects, prior research, specific classes already taken in high school/Princeton? Or is it mostly "show up, take the class, talk after lecture"?

5. Course-load reality. Can you take COS 226 fall + start in a lab, or does that combo eat you alive freshman year?

Anything you wish you'd known going in, very welcome.

Committed recently and trying to understand the Greek scene before fall. I know it's unrecognized and rush is spring of sophomore year, so I'm not in any rush to decide, but I want to ask people who've been through it:

1. How selective is rush actually? Are some houses harder to get than others, and what makes someone stand out vs cut?
2. Are there activities, dorms, or friend groups that consistently feed into specific sororities? I keep hearing Kappa, Theta, Pi Phi each have a vibe but I don't know what's real and what's stereotype.
3. How different are the sororities from each other in practice? Or is it more "your friends are in X so you go X"?
4. Is the toxic stuff people post online (cuts based on looks, sororities ranked by how pretty the girls are, cliquey behavior, etc) real at Princeton or is that an SEC import that didn't take root here?
5. How much does being in a sorority actually help with bicker into clubs like Ivy, Cottage, Cap, TI? Is it a real pipeline or overstated?
6. Do people who join sororities get a rep on campus, good or bad?

Trying to figure out if it's worth the time and energy or if eating clubs + activities are the real game. Thanks.

Committed to Princeton recently and starting to think about social fit on top of academics. I know bicker isn't until sophomore spring but I keep reading that the roadmap starts freshman year through the activities you join and the people you meet.

For current members or recent grads of Ivy, TI, Cottage, Cap, Tower, etc:

1. What activities or teams actually feed into your club? I've seen acapella groups/dance troupes, Coffee Club, and certain sports(e.g. rowing, squash)/majors come up a lot but want to hear it from the inside. 
2. Looking back, what would you tell a freshman who wants to bicker successfully? What did you do early that mattered, and what was wasted effort? 
3. How much of bicker is who you know vs how you present in the actual conversations? 
4. Anything you wish you hadn't done freshman/sophomore year because it hurt your chances or boxed you in socially? 
5. For people who didn't get into their first choice, what would you do differently?

 

Not trying to game it, but I want to understand the social landscape before I get there. Thanks.

incoming '30, planning CS w/ AI focus and want to do research early. trying to figure out if walk-on rowing is feasible or if i'd be cooked.

build-wise i could go lightweight or open (5'9 female, 125lb naturally), leaning lightweight to stay lean but open to either.

a few questions for current/former rowers:

1. how realistic is it to keep grades elite while rowing? specifically thinking COS track + trying to get into a research group by sophomore year (ideally freshman spring). i also would want to try to gain leadership in AI at Princeton.
2. is the "your only friends will be other rowers" thing actually true, or is that overblown? curious if people do stuff like a cappella, volunteering, Greek life, or a campus job on top of practice. how's the social scene like for parties?
3. lightweight vs open as a walk-on — is one more welcoming? and is the weight-cutting culture on the lightweight side as intense as i've read?
4. i've heard Princeton practices are later than other schools, anyone know what the actual schedule looks like? mornings vs afternoons, how often, weekend commitments?
5. what does summer between freshman/soph year look like — training camp expected or more flexible?

thanks! feel free to comment anything else you think would be helpful for me to know :)